Harriet Ryan

Writer

Harriet Ryan is an investigative reporter for the Los Angeles Times. Since joining the paper in 2008, she has written about high-profile people, including Phil Spector, Michael Jackson and Britney Spears, and institutions, including the Catholic Church, the Kabbalah Centre and Purdue Pharma, the manufacturer of OxyContin. She previously worked at Court TV and the Asbury Park Press. She is a graduate of Columbia University.

Recent Articles

When Dr. Vivek Murthy left his Massachusetts hospital to become U.S. surgeon general, the nurses who had known him since he was a resident had a parting plea: Do something about addiction. On Thursday, Murthy tried to make good on that request with the release of a first-of-its-kind report calling...

The knocks started just after 9 a.m. in Willowbrook. Sheriff's deputies moved down the streets of a rough neighborhood known as Corner Pocket, tapping on gates with flashlights and calling through open windows. Is something wrong, asked residents, some still in pajamas. Are you looking for someone?...

Popular campgrounds and hiking trails near Big Sur remained off-limits for the holiday weekend as fire crews continued their six-week battle against a blaze burning in the Los Padres National Forest. Federal officials said Saturday morning that with the Soberanes fire only about 60% contained,...

The Obama administration announced $53 million in grants Tuesday to help states fight the opioid epidemic, while warning that the amount is a fraction of the funding needed from Congress to address the crisis. In comments timed to International Overdose Awareness Day on Wednesday, administration...

Two California representatives called Monday for a congressional investigation of opioid manufacturers, citing a Los Angeles Times investigation that found that the maker of OxyContin collected extensive evidence of criminal trafficking of its drug but in many cases did not alert law enforcement....

The top law enforcement official in New Hampshire, a state ravaged by the opioid epidemic, accused the manufacturer of OxyContin on Friday of stonewalling demands for information the company collects about suspected criminal trafficking of its painkiller. “They are just refusing to turn over documents,”...

When it comes to combating the nation’s opioid epidemic, politicians of all stripes say they are fully committed. President Obama wants to spend a billion dollars on new treatment programs. Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump talk about the ravages of addiction and the need for solutions. And Congress...

For years, Jevon “Goldie” Lawson dealt crack on the steps of a 7-Eleven in a rough part of this blue-collar town. He smoked the rocks he didn’t sell and often appeared as strung out as his customers. But in 2008, he moved into a $400,000 house, started driving a champagne-colored Humvee, and made...